Pirates should be eyeing their former prospect after strong showing in KBO

Former Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Mel Rojas Jr. has not been a part of a major league organization since 2017. Since being released by the Braves, he has continued his career, playing in various continents including leagues in Mexico, Japan, the Dominican Republic, and South Korea.

After all these years of playing baseball overseas, Rojas has not received public interest from a team in the majors until now.

According to insider Mike Rodriguez, there is one National League team showing interest in the 34-year-old outfielder, and it's not unrealistic for to think the Pirates would have interest in him.

Pirates could be mystery National League team interested in Mel Rojas Jr.

The first league Rojas went to after being dropped was the KBO in South Korea. He played there from 2017 to 2020 before heading to Japan for two seasons. After that, he spent a season in Mexico, then played in the Dominican Winter League prior to returning to the KBO, which was where he spent 2024.

In his outstanding career in the KBO, Rojas has put up a .323 batting average with 164 home runs, driving in 521. Additionally, his OPS was incredible at .984, which came from an impressive .588 slugging percentage and a solid on-base percentage of .396. His 165 doubles and nine triples added up to an impressive amount of extra-base hits (338).

Recently in 2024, Rojas had a great season in the KBO. He played in 142 games and posted an OPS of .989 with 32 home runs. His wRC+ was great at 152, and his plate discipline was excellent; he walked at a 13.1% rate and struck out just 17.2% of the time.

Rojas has never had an at-bat in the major leagues, but that could change. It is likely that he would decide to sign with the mystery National League team instead of returning to a foreign league. His contract offer would probably be a minor-league deal with the opportunity to compete for a spot in spring training.

This is definitely a path the Pirates should look into. Rojas should not be considered the Opening Day starter, but if he can swing it like he did in South Korea, then why not give him a shot? It would be a remarkably low-risk situation with a potential high reward attached. The Pirates need to retool their minor leagues after losing a ton of depth to free agency, which could be the start Rojas needed.